Every recommendation has a reason
The Address Book is not a list. It is a record of places and people we would return to, or direct a trusted friend toward without reservation. Every entry earns its place through direct experience, or the kind of trust we extend only where it has been consistently warranted.
Italy has no shortage of recommendations. It has a persistent shortage of honest ones. The Address Book will not tell you where everyone goes. It tells you where we go, and why.
Stay
Where character precedes comfort.
Masserie, converted palazzi, small hotels and agriturismi that understand exactly what they are. We favour places that do not need a category to explain themselves. Breakfasts you will still think about on the return journey.
Table
Where the produce decides the menu.
Trattorie, enoterie and family tables that have earned their reputation without announcing it. The criterion is simple: would we bring someone here on their only trip to Italy.
Experience
The appointments worth arranging in advance.
Private visits, atelier openings, seasonal encounters and introductions that require a degree of planning. Experiences with enough substance to justify the effort.
Makers
The people who give Italy its texture.
Ceramicists, winemakers, weavers, perfumers, restorers. The craftspeople whose work represents something irreplaceable in Italian culture, and who do not particularly need to be found.
The first entries arrive July 1st.
The Address Book opens with the first issue of Italy, Privately Yours. Join the newsletter to be informed when it opens, and to read the first issue when it arrives.